Sophisticated construction of single-atom cobalt catalyst based on microbial hyphae for high-performance hydrogenation

Utilizing biomass as a versatile catalyst building platform holds tremendous promise for catalyst design. In this study, we demonstrate a facile and effective method to fabricate high-performance catalysts using Trichoderma afroharzianum hyphae derived carbon fiber (TAHCF) embedded with Co₁-N₃P₁ active sites for nitroaromatic hydrogenation. This strategy leverages the intrinsic self-assembly and metal ion adsorption capabilities of Trichoderma afroharzianum (TA). During the carbonization process, amino acid-rich fungi undergo transformation into biochar substrates co-doped with functional heteroatoms, facilitating the creation of TAHCF single-atom catalyst. Moreover, the catalytic performance can be further enhanced by tailoring the coordination structure of metal atoms on the carbon substrates. Remarkably, we achieve a high turnover frequency of 1553 h⁻¹ for the hydrogenation of nitrobenzene, along with exceptional conversion and selectivity for various nitro compounds with the metal loading as low as 0.02 wt%. Our study presents a characteristic synthetic method that advances the design of single-atom catalysts by leveraging the inherent structure characteristics of biomass in the pursuit of energy sustainability.